235km. 3 Epic Climbs. Welcome to the 3 Peaks Challenge!

This one was ticked off the to-do list back in 2011. I had signed up again for it earlier this year before coming down with man-flu a few weeks before the start, so it is back on the list for 2013!

It’s funny how you don’t remember the pain of climbing for a total of 4 1/2 hours, or riding for a total of ~9hrs, you just remember the euphoria of crossing the finish line, followed by one of the best warm showers you have ever had in your life!

I was about 80th overall back in 2011, and with the addition of many more riders for 2013, my goal is to get in the top 50 for 2013.

More information on the ride here. A promo video below to get you pumped up and show some of the beautiful scenery of Victorian snow country:

A picture of the course profile and rough times to climb each of the three peaks – with Falls Creek the hardest arriving after already riding 200km!

Time to start training 🙂

Update: For an intersting perspective on the 3 Peaks Challenge check out this article by Cycling Tips! A great excerpt from the site:

I came up behind someone walking early in the climb who I recognised as the same guy I passed a few hours ago walking up Mt Hotham (how did he get in front of me?). Since I had succumbed to the fact that keeping up with Nick Mitchell [the pro] was a total pipe dream, the very least I could do was boost my ego by smashing this bloke. I put on my poker face and rode by him like he was standing still. My pace gradually slowed. I heard a someone riding up behind me. I looked back and it’s him locked on my wheel. “G’day,” he says with this taunting smile on his face! He appeared to be enjoying himself! I then hear him zig zagging behind me using the entire width of the road. I push harder but I can’t drop him even though he’s riding twice the distance as me. To my relief I hear a pause and then “clip clop, clip clop”. For God’s sake, he’s now walking and I still can’t drop him!